Worlds Apart
by Besh'n'Lella
Summary: Blaise and Hermione are the new Heads, but something that no one suspected is underway...can they stop it? Even with Draco's and Ginny's help? They'd have to go against all their friends and then some...
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: We own nothing, everything belongs to the wonderful JKR._

_**Worlds Apart**_

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"Hermione, you're going to miss the train if you don't hurry up." Ron shouted from the window of the compartment he had saved.

"I'll be right there," I responded.

Rolling my eyes, I bid my parents good-bye. Going into my 7th and final year at Hogwarts, I knew everything would be different. I had been made HeadGirl. No one knew who the HeadBoy was, although I had heard that Draco Malfoy had turned it down. I dragged my trunk behind me as I made my way to the Heads compartment.

"Watch it Mudblood," Draco Malfoy sneered.

"What, too good for Head Boy?" I retorted.

Finally, he gave up and continued to find a compartment. Walking into the Heads' compartment, I didn't even look to see if the HeadBoy was there or not, I just threw my stuff onto the shelf and sat down. Facing away from the door, I glanced around the empty compartment, and settled into the seat. Glancing at my watch, I noticed that we had left Kings Cross about an hour ago.

_Was I really staring at Malfoy that long?He did look good though._

Sighing, I shook that last thought from my head. I would not think about the bloody ferret as anything other than that, a ferret. Closing my eyes, I almost didn't hear him come in.

"Asleep already Granger? Life with the muggles that hard?"

I barely heard the voice because it was so soft and quiet.

_There's no way that voice could belong to a Slytherin, especially not Malfoy. This might be better than I thought._

Slowly, I sat up straighter and turned to look at who had entered. Sitting across from me was none other than Blaise Zabini. My jaw dropped. How could I get stuck with the only person in the school worse than Malfoy himself?

"Zabini."

"Granger."

"How'd you get Head? Everyone else turn it down?"

"Bite me."

"Fuck off."

"Aww, the Mudblood has a mouth on her."

I rolled my eyes, and pulled a book out of my trunk. I was not going to sit here the entire way to Hogwarts listening to him insult me, nor would I continue to insult him. I was better than that.

_Damn, how did I get lucky enough to get to live with probably the hottest guy in school for an entire year. He is better than Malfoy. Nicer body, more muscular, and probably a better personality too._

I threw my book down, I was getting aggravated at my thoughts. I knew I shouldn't because I would be living with him for the entire year. It was hard not to appreciate his lean body though. Sighing, I grabbed my uniform and robes and went to go change. Before I got out the door, I heard Blaise mutter:

"This will prove to be an interesting year. A very interesting year."

I didn't even look back, or acknowledge that I had heard him. Even though I knew that he was right.

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A/N: Written by Lella. Redone version of my original story by the same name, but now a friend of mine, Besh, and I are working on it together. Please review and let us know what you think! 

-Lella (Alexial Malfoy)


	2. Chapter 2

_**Worlds Apart**_

_Chapter 2_

I managed the rest of the train ride quite simply; I hid. I know, not the thing for the Head Girl to do, but I couldn't handle Blaise's constant staring. I didn't feel like talking to Ron and Harry, and God forbid if I ran into Malfoy...again. When we reached Hogsmeade, I made sure everyone got off of the train and into the carriages, and led the first years to Hagrid, with the help of Zabini, of course. I knew it would be impossible to avoid him, but a girl can try, can't she?

When we had made sure everyone was in the carriages, I walked towards the Head's carriage. Stepping into the carriage, I sat patiently waiting for Blaise. After a few minutes, he climbed into the carriage.

"Sorry, I was detained."

"What happened?" I asked curiously.

"Nothing much, just a normal spat between Draco and Pansy," he responded, rolling his eyes.

"Oh." I looked down. I really didn't want to get into Draco Malfoy's personal life.

"I wouldn't worry about it."

We sat in silence for the rest of the ride. Almost as soon as the carriage stopped, Blaise got up and opened the door for me to get out.

"I almost forgot, you missed the briefing of our duties. But I can tell you about them in the Common Room after dinner."

"Yeah. We should probably get inside. You know as well as I do that the feast won't start until Dumbledore makes his speech, and introduces us. They have probably started the sorting by now, though." I replied.

As we made our way to the Great Hall, I couldn't stop myself from sneaking glances at him.

_He is so much better than Malfoy. I wonder why Malfoy turned HeadBoy down? I must remember to ask Blaise later._

Snapping out of my thoughts, I realized that Blaise was about three paces ahead of me.

"Zabini, wait up!" I called.

He looked to each side of him.

"Granger, what happened? I thought you were beside me."

"Meh...I was just caught up in my thoughts."

"I knew you always fawned over me."

"Gods, Zabini. You're more egotistical than Malfoy." I retorted.

"I think you just hurt my feelings, Granger," he joked.

"Yeah right, you don't have any feelings."

Rolling my eyes, I stepped into the Great Hall, unnoticed by everyone except Harry and Ginny. Quickly, I went to sit at the Gryffindor table. Fortunately, the sorting hadn't started yet, but the Sorting Hat had already sung it's song. I slid in between Harry and Ron and waited for the sorting to begin.

"When I call your name, come up and sit on the stool." Professor McGongall's voice could be heard throughout the room. She was standing in front of an extremely nervous looking group of first years.

"Alvarez, Hannah."

"Gryffindor," the hat shouted.

The entire Gryffindor table clapped as the sorting continued. Before long, the Sorting was over, with Blaise's little brother, Vinny, getting sorted into Slytherin.

"Imagine that," Ron muttered as soon as the Hat had placed him in Slytherin.

"Ronald," I reprimanded him, "leave the poor boy alone."

Suddenly, Dumbledore stood up, and the entire hall got quiet.

"Welcome back previous students. And welcome new students. A new year has hit Hogwarts. As you all know, the Forbidden Forest is, as always, off limits. Mr. Filch has also added a few other things to the list as well, I will not bore you with all of the items, but make sure that you read them. They are posted in all of the common rooms, as well as the bulletin board. Also, before we eat, I would like to introduce our new Heads. Headboy, Blaise Zabini, of Slytherin. And Headgirl, Hermione Granger, of Gryffindor."

As the school erupted into shouts and claps, the food appeared on the tables. Looking around the table, I saw everyone already digging into the delicious food that was before us.

After the feast was over, Dumbledore once again stood up to make his second speech.

"Well, now that you are all full, you should get up to your rooms and get ready for bed. Prefects, lead your house mates to your common rooms. Hermione, Blaise, I would like a word before you two leave."

* * *

A/N: Written by Lella. 


	3. Chapter 3

_**Worlds Apart**_

_Chapter 3_

After making sure everyone was out of the Great Hall, and on their way to the common rooms, Blaise and I made our way to the Headmaster's office.

"Lemondrops," Blaise said to the gargoyle.

Slowly, the statue turned around, revealing a winding staircase up to Dumbledore's office. Stepping onto the staircase, I waited for Blaise to get on behind me so we could begin the journey upwards. Upon reaching the top, the door to the circular room was open, so we walked inside.

"Ah, Hermione, Blaise. I'm glad you're here. Miss Granger, I believe you missed the meeting about your Head duties, so whilst you are here, I will fill you in. You and Mr. Zabini will need to patrol the corridors every night, along with the fifth and sixth year Prefects. You two will be in charge of making sure that each Prefect knows which corridors they are suppsed to patrol, and who their partner is. Also, you will be in charge of all of the balls that we have throughout the year. I will let you know atleast three months prior to each one, so that you have time to plan. But don't worry, I will arrange for a band or dj, just tell me what you would like. There will need be be a minimum of one Prefect and Heads meeting per month. Any questions? No? Good. Your common room is located under the Great Hall, just west of the Kitchens. It is gaurded by a portrait of the four founders. Your password is Gobbstones. You two may head off to bed, if you have no questions."

Blaise and Hermione said their goodbyes to the Headmaster and silently made their way to their commons. As they neared the kitchens and their room, Hermione wondered what her room would look like.

As they stood in front of the portrait leading to the common room, the founders started to whisper amoungst themselves about the unlikely pair in front of them.

"Gobbstones" Blasie said to the four.

Blaise walked into the common room as soon as the portrait swung open. Walkign in behind him, Hermione's jaw dropped at her lush surroundings. The room was decorated richly in deep reds and sparkling silvers.

"What mudblood, never seen such luxury?" Blaise sneered.

Hermione's eyes flashed to his smirking face. With a fire in her eyes, she calmly walked over to him, and slapped hard across the face.

"Watch it mudblood." Blaise said, his voice icy.

Hermione turned on her heel and stormed up the stairs to her room, turning back around, she looked him dead in the eye and said:

"And wipe that damn smirk off your face. It clashes horribly with the bruise." With that, she walked into her room and slammed the door.

"Women and their bloody moods." Blaise muttered.

"Fuck off Zabini, I heard that." Hermione screamed.

* * *

A/N: Written by Lella. 


	4. Chapter 4

_Worlds Apart_

_Chapter 4_

"Granger get down here. Dinner's in five minutes," Blaise yelled from the couch.

"I'm not hungry," was Hermione's muffled reply.

"Fine, well I'm going. But don't forget we have rounds at nine."

With that, Blaise walked over to the portrait and slammed the door. He quietly walked back to the couch and laid down. If Hermione was like the other girls he knew, she would come down after she was sure that he had left. Blaise was starting to fall asleep when he heard the faint sound of a door closing and footsteps on the stairs. Slowly, rising up so that he could see her, Blaise never expected to see that she had been crying. Laying back down before she could see him, he pretended to be asleep.

Walking over to their mini kitchen, Hermione put on water to make tea. Slowly, she made her way over the the couch that Blaise occupied. When she saw him, she knew that he wasn't sleeping and that he had seen her. But being the person that she was, she quietly walked over to him and sat down on the couch. Leaning over him, she gently shook him.

"What?" He muttered groggily.

"Oh, come of it, you weren't really sleeping."

"Damn Granger, you're good." He replied.

"So, why did you stay?"Hermione asked.

"I didn't fell like dealing with everyone. Besides, if I went and you didn't, then your 'Golden Trio' boys will think that I have you locked up."

Slowly, Hermione went to sit on the couch opposite Blaise. Gazing into the fire, she began to think about the day's events.

"Hermione," Blaise's quiet voice interrupted her thoughts, "we'd better head out for rounds."

Hermione silently got up from her place on the couch and walked to her dorm room to grab her cloak and shoes. A few minutes later, she walked back out to find Blaise actually asleep on the couch. After mentally arguing with her self for a while, she decided that she could do rounds alone. He looked so peaceful, she didn't want to wake him. She knew what guys were like when they were awoken.

Tip-toeing out of the portrait hole, Hermione headed up to the fifth floor corridor where she and Blaise were supposed to patrol. About halfway up the stairs, she realized that she had forgotten her wand. Turning around to go back to the common room, she bumped into something hard. Before she could scream from suprise, a hand covered her mouth.

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A/N: Written by Lella. 


	5. Chapter 5

_Worlds Apart_

_Chapter 5_

Hermione woke up groggily; she felt like she had been drugged. She opened her eyes slowly and started to look around, trying to take in her surroundings. She didn't have much luck, though. The room was almost completely dark, save for a few candles that had been placed in a few candleholders on the wall. Hermione reached for her wand, only to find she didn't have it. _Oh yeah, I forgot it. And I never managed to get it,_ she thought, cursing whoever had brought her here. She sat there on...whatever she was sitting on for a few more minutes, and then she decided to try and leave, to see what would happen.

Almost as though someone had been waiting for her to move, the second Hermione moved, someone said "Lumos!" and the room was thrown into light. She now saw that the room she was in was almost like a dungeon, except for the fact that there was a large, luxurious bed with black satin sheets, black pillows, and, surprisingly, a forest green comforter stretched over it. This was what Hermione had woken up on. This was what she was now sitting on, observing the room with an expression of shock on her face. This was what she was sitting on, looking at the person who had lit up the room with his wand. "R...Ron?" She asked incredulously.

"Hey, Herm," he said, standing up from the chair he was sitting in. As he stood, Hermione noticed how much taller he seemed. She supposed she had never really noticed because she had never really thought about Ron that way. But the way he said her name, the way he moved, everything about him seemed to make Hermione feel calm. She closed her eyes for a few seconds to regain control of herself. As her eyes were closed, she missed the expression of sarcastic amusement that crossed over Ron's features. It was an expression usually associated with Slytherins, that expression that said that the person wearing it thought rather a lot of themselves, and anyone who didn't must be crazy.

"Why did you bring me here, Ron?" Hermione asked him, having finally regained control of her impulses. She couldn't explain what about Ron had made her suddenly react this way. All she knew was that suddenly, all of her hormones were on overdrive, and she wanted Ron really...really...badly. The setting, although not her first pick, was beginning to become more and more suitable the longer she thought about it. But something about Ron, in all of his...Hermione didn't even know what to call it...didn't seem quite right. Maybe it was something in his expression, which remained almost too neutral. Maybe it was the smallest of small smirks that played around his lips. There were a lot of things that didn't seem quite right about this scenario, but Hermione found she didn't really care all that much. "Ron? Why did you bring me here?" she asked again, voice breaking slightly. He was closer...oh, he was so close.

"Because I want you," Ron said in a tone that Hermione didn't even know he had. He had gotten to where she sat, immobilized by a mixture of shock, fear, and...lust? As he said it, Ron reached out for her, bringing her closer to him than they had ever been before (but Hermione didn't entirely mind), and kissed her. Hard. Hermione gasped; she knew what about Ron was different. He was never this confident, never this appealing to her. Because he never acted this way. He never moved with the grace of a cat, never had spoken to her in such a blunt fashion. That kiss revealed to Hermione everything she needed to know. And as she gasped she pulled away. Before Ron could react, she had slapped him across the face, to see what he would do. He turned to her, and she saw the murderous glint that came into his eyes for a split second, before it was covered with confusion and hurt. But Hermione had seen all she needed to see. She jumped up. Well, she tried to, but jumping up on a bed doesn't exactly work all that well. She stumbled before she could fully get up, and ended up falling off the bed, instead of jumping off like she had planned to.

She fell and hit the ground, banging her knee quite a bit. Biting back a cry, Hermione shakily stood up, and was assaulted by Ron, who was trying, it seemed to kiss her, but Hermione was far too jumpy and suspicious to let it happen. "Don't touch me!" she yelled, elbowing Ron in the stomach. He let out a gust of air, and doubled over. Hermione took that as an opportunity to get out. She ran across the room, searching frantically for a door. And as soon as she thought, _I need a door, _one appeared right in front of her. She ran through the door, and locked it from the outside. Then, she ran. Straight into someone else.

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A/N: Written by Besh. Hey all, Besh here, with Lella doing the uploading because, unfortunately, I lack the proper uploading software. T-T sad, I know. ;p anyway, review please and thanks! I want to see what you all have to say:- 


	6. Chapter 6

Worlds Apart

_Chapter 6_

Hermione hit the other person. Hard. As she was getting up, for she had fallen, she caught a glimpse of the person's platinum blonde hair. _Oh great, I've just run into Malfoy. The last person I wanted to see. _

"What are you doing here ferret?" Hermione asked with deep loathing in her voice.

"I could ask you the same thing, Mudblood," Draco replied in his slow drawl.

Hermione backed up against the door. She had had enough for one night, and the look on Draco's face scared her. It was the same look that Ron had had earlier. Slowly, Draco walked towards her, he noticed the fear in her eyes, but that didn't stop him. Leaning his body against hers, Draco caressed her face with his hand. The look of fear left Hermione's face, and Draco noticed it at once. Taking her hand, he guided her over to the couch in front of the fireplace. Hermione realized that they were in the Room of Requirement. Glancing around the room, she noticed that there was only a couch, fireplace and some bookshelves. Noticing that was all, Hermione relaxed a bit.

"So, why are you here Malfoy? I though you were supposed to hate all Mudbloods, or people lower than yourself." Hermione said, icily.

Draco just rolled his eyes. "If you must know, I'm here because of my friend Blaise." He paused for a moment, "and for my own personal reasons," Draco said, almost hinting at something.

Hermione decided to play along at Malfoy's game, whatever it was. "Oh really? And what does your friend Blaise want, might I ask?" _Well, this will be fun._

"Oh, I don't know. Well, I do, but I'm not sure if I should tell you." Draco replied in his slow drawl.

"Well, if your not going to tell me, Malfoy," Hermione started, putting extra emphasis on his last name, "then I'm going to leave." With that, Hermione got up off the couch and headed to the door. But just as she was turning the doorknob, he grabbed her hand, and pulled her back to the couch.

"I've decided to let you in on a secret." He told her. "Don't take my word for this, because it's just a rumor that's been going around. Well, sort of. Anyways, I overheard Potty and the Weasel talking the other day, and they were making plans about doing something to you. But of course, they noticed me, and stopped the conversation. Now, Blaise and I are willing to protect you. For a price of course."

Hermione looked at him in shock. _What could those two possibly want from me. They are two of the smartest wizards in the school, so it couldn't be homework. _Then, Hermione realized what they wanted. Getting back up off the couch, this time Hermione ran for the door, not giving Malfoy a chance to get up. As soon as she stepped out the door, she was cornered.

* * *

A/N: Written by Lella. 


	7. Chapter 7

_Worlds Apart_

_Chapter 7_

Ron stayed doubled over for a long time. Hermione had hit him harder than he thought she could. "Bloody...hell...what did...she do...that...for?" he asked himself furiously, gasping for air. It hadn't quite come back to him yet, and all he could do was stand there, clutching his stomach, wheezing. It took another ten minutes, but Ron finally got his breath back. It was then he started swearing. "God damn that bitch! What in the bloody hell did she have to fucking go and pull that shit for?! Damn it!" He continued in this way for quite some time as he walked out of the room. _What am I going to do?_ he thought. _Seducing her didn't work...although, for a second or two, I was sure it was working...no matter. If I couldn't do it, then Harry can,_ he thought, an evil smirk marring his features. Had anyone been walking by, they would have thought that Ron wasn't Ron but...some evil being. The sight of his face might have sent shivers down their spines and made them break out in a cold sweat, made them tremble in fear.

There was one person who would never be scared by Ron, however. Harry Potter. Known to all as The Boy Who Lived, known to some as Potty, known to others as "that Potter boy". He didn't care what names they gave him. He didn't care if they thought he was the Chosen One. If he was, that was great. If not...it would be kind of hard for everyone to realize that the Chosen One, the one who was supposed to save them all from what is perhaps the greatest evil they had ever known, was possibly even more evil and malevolent than Voldemort.

He had given himself a major image makeover during these last summer holidays. He used to look so innocent, yet oddly endearing. Now, however...he had grown and filled out, the lines of his jaw had hardened along with the rest of his body, and he had perfected the Draco smirk. Made it better, even. He did his smirk, and people just couldn't help but stare as he walked past. He had left his glasses behind, along with a lot of other things, and had permanently enhanced his vision to make it 20/20. So he could fully focus his glare on people and really make them squirm. He didn't know when he had become so vicious...but he wasn't changing anytime soon. He was having too much fun. He had quickly gone from about #4 on the Top 5 Hot Guys at Hogwarts (at least, that's what the girls of Hogwarts had rated him) to fighting for the #1 spot with Draco Malfoy. That thought made him smirk...

He was taking a stroll, smirking to himself as he schemed, when suddenly, he rounded a corner and ran smack into Ron. "What the hell, Ron?" Harry said angrily. "Why don't you watch where you're going?"

"Well, excuse me, Your Highness," Ron snapped. "I didn't realize I had to make myself fucking disappear so you wouldn't bump into anything! Do me a favor and get over it!"

"Whatever, Ron," Harry said, already bored with this game. "What's got your robes tied so tight?"

"Hermione, that's who!" Ron said exasperatedly. "One second, she's totally into me, then the next, she's knocking the wind out of me...by elbowing me in the ribs!" he hissed at Harry, who had been smiling. His smile vanished, though, and was replaced with a scowl. "Well, who needs her, eh, mate?"

"I do," Ron said, allowing some emotion to show.

"Oh, give it a rest," Harry said. "If she hasn't fallen for you by now, chances are, she never will." The tone of his voice stung, and that was what he intended. He needed to verbally slap some sense into Ron, and it seemed to work.

"Yeah...yeah, you're right," Ron said, massaging his still aching stomach. "Bloody hell, it hurt, though!"

Harry just sighed. "Well, come on then, we've got a meeting that we're supposed to be holding."

"Right, right!" Ron said, having completely forgotten. He and Harry walked quickly to their designated meeting place. The door was slightly ajar, so Harry knew that someone was there.

He walked in, and what he saw made him smile. Everyone he had summoned was there: Colin Creevey, Crabbe, Goyle, Zacharias Smith, Terry Boot, and Marietta Edgecombe. "So you all decided to show up...good, that's good," Harry said, beginning to pace. "Well, I suppose you want to know why you're here. Well, you should suppose I want to know why you should know everything. What we're going to do will bring your prestige, renown, respect, and...should you want it...a certain...reputation," Harry paused, another smirk crossing his face.

"All I need from you is for you to sign this oath. Nothing more, nothing less. But be warned: once you sign it, you can not change your mind. If you do, you'd have to suffer my...extreme displeasure," Harry said, his emerald green eyes narrowing into what shockingly resembled the Dark Lord. "Well? Are you in, or are you out?" he demanded. After a few minutes, they came forward one by one and signed the oath. "Nice...very nice," he said, smiling evilly.

"Well, as of right now, that's all we need. You may go now." Colin, Crabbe, Goyle, Smith, Boot, and Edgecombe all ran back to their respective common rooms, knowing three things: 1) They were involved in what could become the greatest thing ever to happen to Hogwarts. 2) What they were involved in would also, if done wrong, get them a lifetime sentence is Azkaban. And 3)...they must guard the secret with their lives...or their lives would be forfeit.


	8. Chapter 8

Worlds Apart

Chapter 8

The Next Morning:

Hermione walked down to her and Blaise's private common room. She noticed someone sitting on the couch, and assumed that it was Blaise. Walking over to the little kitchenette attached to the room, she jumped when she saw two others there waiting for her.

When Hermione woke up, she could tell it was early evening, but she didn't know where she was. Getting the sense of déva vu, Hermione was afraid to move too much because of what had happened last time. Rolling over onto her side, she heard hushed voices coming from an adjoining room.

"God Potter, did you have that little faith in us? We told you we would get her." Hermione heard the voice, but couldn't tell who it was, other than it belonged to a girl.

"Edgecombe, I would shut up if I were you," came Ron's voice; Hermione knew that at once.

_Shit. Shit. Shit. This can't be good. I need to get out of here, and fast. But how? Surely if I move, they will hear me. And I can't apparate, but a disillusionment charm might be my best shot, after all, they aren't that smart, and probably didn't put up any wards._

"_Well, did you get her?" Another voice asked. Once again, Hermione recognized the voice as that of Colin Creevey._

"_It wasn't hard. All we did was sneak up into her and the Zabini boy's room. Hermione was always an early riser. The only thing left was to stun her and drag her back down here." Ron stated, a little too proudly._

All of a sudden, everything went quiet. It was as if they group sensed that she was awake. Hermione lay perfectly still, hardly breathing for fear that if she made a sound, one of them would come in and torture her.

After another moment of silence, Harry finally spoke. "Don't forget about our meeting with Him tonight," he told them. "You all may go now, I will inform you when she awakes. Then we can have our fun."

A few moments later, everyone had left, and Harry walked over to where Hermione was. " Get up, I know you're awake. And that you've been awake most of the time." His voice was cruel.

_Hermione obliged, but as she sat up, she slapped him. While he was distracted, she used her skills to summon both of their wands. Flashing his wand in front of his face, she hexed him. Now he was the one knocked out. Running out of the room, and up to the common room, she was stopped by Ron and Colin._

"Where do you think you're going Mudblood?" Ron asked with a slightly insane look, backing her into a suit of armor.

Without thinking, she stunned him, and took off running again, but this time she ran into someone else.

_Well, I don't think this could get any worse. Hermione thought to herself._


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Draco Malfoy honestly wasn't expecting to run into Hermione Granger, and he couldn't say it made for a very pleasant surprise. One minute, he's walking along, and everything is fine. Then he turned a corner and "Oof!" ran smack into a mass of bushy brown hair. "Would you mind--" Draco began, cutting himself off quickly when he saw her face. She looked like she had just escaped from somewhere, and that the people holding her hostage were none too nice.

"Merlin, Hermione," Draco said, his use of her fisrt name showing his concern, "what happened to you?"

"I was just taken hostage in the private common room," Hermione replied, more than a little shocked at Draco showing such open concern. Then she reminded herself that he had been like this for a few months. Ever since his father died, Draco had gone through some rather drastic changes, his newfound niceness being only the tip of the iceberg. Shaking her head to clear it, Hermione said, "It was Ron and that Edgecombe girl who did it. They held me there, and then when I woke up, Harry came over to...talk to me. Well, actually, he didn't talk to me; he more threatened me and was just plain cold. I honestly thought he had become demented in some way, the way he talked to me. He's never been like that before. Him and Ron, as well. Ron's acting just like him."

"So report them," Draco suggested, only to have Hermione shake her head.

"Who would believe me?" she asked him, watching his face as a look of comprehension passed over it. "The Hogwarts Golden Boy, and the Golden Boy's Sidekick, the Chess Grandmaster, whatever title you want to give him, taking the Head Girl hostage? In her own private quarters?"

"I guess you have a point," Draco unwillingly conceded. "But something needs to be done. And something will get done. Come on," he said, turning and taking her arm.

As they walked away, Hermione suddenly realized that they had completely forgotten about the people chasing her. "Malfoy..." she whispered. "Malfoy...Malfoy..._Malfoy_...Draco!" That got his attention. "They were chasing me, you know," Hermione said matter-of-factly, as if she were discussing the weather.

"I won't worry about them if you don't," Draco replied just as conversationally. No more words were passed, because suddenly Draco was levitated by his ankles. Hermione heard laughter, but when she turned to the source, she couldn't see anything. _That blasted Cloak_, she thought, then pulled out her wand and thought, _Liberacorpus_! Draco started to plummet towards the floor, but Hermione muttered, "_Locomotor Malfoy_!" and managed to catch him less than three inches above the ground.

"Thanks, Granger," Draco said as he managed to right himself and stand on his own two feet.

"What, you've finished calling me Hermione already?" she asked him teasingly.

"Don't push your luck..._Hermione_," Draco said, purposely saying her first name just to see if he could make her smile. And she did. Her face lit up with a huge grin that seemed infectious; before long, Draco was grinning just as big as she was, and feeling like a complete idiot. "Now come on, _Hermione_," he said, eliciting a giggle from Hermione. "Let's get away from these heathens."

"But Draco, where are we going?" Hermione asked, confused. Nowhere in the castle was safe, not from the new and (not necessarily) improved Harry Potter and Ron Weasley.

"We're going to the Slytherin common room," Draco said simply, ignoring Hermione's protests.

"Come on Hermione," he said, using his most persuasive voice. "Think about it. Edgecombe's a Ravenclaw, Potter and Weasley and Creevey are Gryffindors, and anyone else--"

"How did you know Colin was involved?" Hermione cut him off.

"Err...well...I honestly didn't want to have to have you discover it this way, but Blaise and I have been conducting a little investigation into the recent...activities of Potter and his posse. We don't like what they're doing, and we're going to try to put a stop to whatever it is befoe it gets too far."

"Good luck with that," Hermione said. She wasn't saying it to be mean; she was simply stating a fact. Draco and Blaise would be very hard pressed to stop Harry and his "posse" indeed. Of course, if they had higher numbers of people who were willing to unseat Harry--that was the term they all used; Harry seemed to have become a tyrant, dictator, self-declared ruler, whatever you want to call it, and whenever he was talked about, all anyone seemed to be able to talk about was rumors of various efforts to unseat him--then there shouldn't be too much of a problem. Hermione told Draco this.

"I have realized that Hermione, and so has Blaise," Draco replied, knowing she wasn't being unsupportive or pessimistic, simply honest. "Which is why we have also, in addition to investigating Potter, been recruiting people to what we call the APO."

"APO?" Hermione asked, interested.

"You'll see when we get to the meeting place," Draco replied mysteriously, taking her arm and leading her towards the Slytherin common room. There were no protests; Hermione was completely consumed by her curiosity about this project of Draco's and Blaise's.

They finally got to the common room, but instead of opening the way in, Draco took Hermione off to the left of the door, towards what looked like a blank stretch of stone wall. Hermione didn't say anything; everyone knew, and Hermione knew better than most, the number of secrets Hogwarts held. So she simply waited. Finally, after looking around, Draco put his fists on the wall and began pounding it. Hermione was perplexed, but she held her tongue. It took her a while (Draco pounded on those stones for a long time), but it eventually occured to her that he wasn't just pounding on the wall. Each stone lit up a different color when Draco tapped it, making a pattern of sorts. _It's like a secret combination, or a password, or a key_, she thought. Eventually, the pounding on the wall ceased, and one of the stones jutted out from the wall. Hermione moved forward to grab it, but Draco held her arm. He gave her a look that clearly said, 'Don't touch anything just yet.' Hermione nodded and stepped back, watching as Draco flicked, yes, flicked the stone in the wall. He also muttered something, but Hermione didn't quite catch it. He stepped back, and this time, instead of just one stone, a large group of stones began to jut out of the wall. Just when they were about to fall out, however, all the stones shifted sideways, making an opening into what looked like a dark, cavernous space. Before Hermione could voice her misgivings about the place, however, Draco took her arm again, and led her inside without a backward glance at the corridor outside.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

"Wow," Hermione said as she followed Draco into the darkened room. At the moment, she wasn't quite capable of saying anything else. They had just walked out of a cold, drafty, barren stone corridor into a warm, welcoming, cozy, well-furnished room.

The walls were, for some unknown reason, red with golden flecks in them that sparkled whenever the light from the huge iron fireplace hit them, so it was not unlike walking into a room full of twinkling stars. It was a circular room, so there were no corners for anything to lurk in. All around the room were pictures of various people, creatures, and animals. Here there was a portrait of the previous headmaster, Professor Dumbledore; there was a portrait of Sir Cadogan; over there was a picture of a rearing centaur; over there was a painting depicting a giant going up against a sea of black, with jets of red and green shooting out of various places in the black mass.

"What, exactly, is this place?" Hermione asked Draco, who shortly replied, "Room of Requirement," before walking off toward someone Hermione couldn't identify. It didn't take long for her to find out who it was, however. Draco, who had been suddenly cold and distant from the moment they had walked into the room, had tapped the other guy on the shoulder. The guy was sitting in a chair that was facing the wall and someone or something, so Hermione couldn't see who was in the chair until he stood up and turned around, revealing himself to be Blaise.

"Hermione!" Blaise said jovially upon catching sight of her. He seemed happy, a little too happy, but Hermione didn't care to find out why at the moment. She had caught a glimpse of something behind Blaise. Or someone. Most likely the latter. Hermione's eyes narrowed slightly, but she managed to cover it with a smile and respond lightly, "Hello Blaise. Tell me, where exactly are we?"

"Well if you want to get...technical," Blaise replied, slurring "technical" so that it came out sounding like "techhhnichhhal", "we're underneath the lake. However, the room we're standing in is none other than the Room of Requirement," he finished grandly, sweeping his hand around the room in a dramatic fashion. He was probably drunk; he and Draco had a reputation for getting plastered whenever they felt like it. Hermione had expected that, being in positions of authority, they would clean up their act a little. But then again, since when had Blaise or Draco ever measured up to Hermione's expectations?

"The Room of Requirement? Isn't that on the seventh floor?" Hermione asked.

"That's what we always thought, too," Blaise responded, swaying. Before Draco, Hermione, or who looked like Hannah Abbott hiding back there could catch him, he had fallen to the ground, hard. Hermione couldn't help but giggle, but she straightened up quickly at a look from Draco, and hurried across the room to help Blaise to one of the plush chintz armchairs that dotted the room. "He needs an anti-intoxication or detoxification potion," Hermione said, and Draco gave her a pointed look. Sighing to acknowledge that she had gotten the hint, Hermione stood up and thought, _I need a way to get to the hospital wing_. Almost immediately, a door showed up underneath Sir Cadogan's portrait. Ignoring the knight's jeers and yells, Hermione walked out of the door and ended up in the corridor outside the entrance to the hospital wing.

She walked in quietly, intending to poke around in Madam Pomfrey's stores, but it was not to be so. Somehow, Pomfrey heard her and was bustling out in a second, asking, "Are you all right, Miss Granger?"

"Yes, I'm fine, Madam Pomfrey," Hermione began as Pomfrey began to check her anyway. It really got on one's nerves, but Hermione held her temper and her tongue in check, waiting for Pomfrey to finish. When she finally did and had deduced for herself that there was indeed nothing wrong with Hermione, she asked, "If you don't need me, then why are you here?"

"I need a...detoxification potion," Hermione said, ignoring Madam Pomfrey's ludicrous look. Pomfrey asked, "Is it Mister Zabini again?" Hermione nodded, amazed that Pomfrey would be able to guess something like that. Thankfully, Pomfrey didn't say anything more, but searched her stores and found and gave to Hermione the odd potion that constantly switched between a shade or hot pink and orange. Hermione thanked her and walked out of the hospital wing. She looked at the spot where she had entered the corridor and thought, _I need to get back to the room you hide_. A door showed up, Hermione walked through it, and found herself back in the Room of Requirement version 2.0. She wasn't quite sure why she thought of it that way; maybe it was because she had thought that the only way to get to the Room of Requirement was through the seventh floor entrance. Shrugging it off in her mind, Hermione walked over to where Draco sat still next to Blaise, who also hadn't moved, not that Hermione expected him to. Handing the potion to Draco, she said, "Hannah, you should probably go now." The girl who had been hiding in the shadows started, and Hermione saw that it had not been Hannah Abbott, but Parvati Patil. And her reaction caused someone else to show up. Padma. Hermione didn't even begin to think about what that had meant.

"I'm sorry, ladies," Draco said dismissively and in a way that implied he wasn't sorry at all, "but you should probably leave. You won't want to be here when he wakes up." The twins nodded and, Disillusioning themselves, got up and walked out of the room.

Hermione watched Draco administer the potion to Blaise and wondered how long it would take for the potion to take effect.

_Ohh...my head_, Blaise thought as he finally came back to consciousness. He had a nasty headache, but it didn't seem to be similar to the hangover headaches he was so well acquainted with. It was then that he realized that he was still in the Room of Requirement. And Draco wasn't there. Neither was Hermione. Blaise hurriedly got up and got dressed, trying not to vomit from his awful migraine.

Eventually, he had made himself presentable and he started toward the door. On the way there, however, his eye fell upon a chair that looked so comfortable...maybe it wouldn't hurt to rest his eyes, maybe it would help his migraine...He was out by five minutes after he had sat down.

That was how Hermione and Draco found him when they got back from classes and various duties they had to perform. Hermione was in rather a bad mood; Peeves had been making trouble in the Astronomy Tower. This time, however, instead of simply smearing ink on the eyepieces of the telescopes, Peeves had deemed it necessary to swivel the telescopes as many times as he could as fast as they could spin, simply to see how long it would take for the telescopes to break. Hermione had had her work cut out for her; if Draco hadn't shown up when he did, things would have gotten really ugly in the Astronomy Tower.

"Ahh...So he's better...somewhat," Hermione observed, taking in his change of clothes. "Too bad that detox potion has rendered him almost completely immobile for at least two days. She walked over, ignoring Draco's mutterings about "don't want to have to be Head Boy for another day" and smoothed Blaise's hair out of his face. She couldn't explain where this oddly maternal instinct had come from. She just wanted to make sure he didn't wake up to a face full of hair. As she cleared it away, Blaise moaned. "Huuurts..." she thought she heard. Smiling, Hermione said, "Yes, detox potions tend to do that to you. You know, if you wouldn't get hammered so often, you wouldn't have this problem." But her admonitions came on deaf ears; Blaise was already out cold again. Sighing, Hermione walked over to one of the armchairs by the fireplace to reflect on her day.

Peeves had been bad enough. Then she had had the misfortune to run across Ron. _Ron..._she thought longingly before giving herself a mental shake. Ron was evil now. As had been proven by his behavior toward her today. Upon seeing her, Ron had called out, "Look at that, the Mudblood progidy resurfaces!" and laughed at her hurt expression. But she had exacted her revenge; she had sent her canaries on him like she had two years before. The expression of pain and outrage on Ron's made her feel much better. However, her anger at him and Harry as well was always bubbling just below the surface. She was going to get them one day. She only hoped that she wouldn't get them too good.

"Hermione..._Hermione_...Granger!" Draco shouted.

"Wha...what?" she replied.

"Are you deaf? Zabini's been asking for you ever since you walked away," Draco said, sounding supremely uninterested. But Hermione could detect something there. She didn't know what it was, but she knew it was there. Getting up and walking over to Blaise, Hermione asked gently, "What is it?"

"S...sorry...you...had to see...that," Blaise managed to get out. Hermione smiled falsely. _How dare he attempt to apologize...Not only did I see him drunk, he was hiding the Patil twins! He's infuriating. _And yet..."That's all right, Blaise," she said sweetly. "You'll just have to be more careful next time, right?"

"R...right," Blaise replied, before falling into another sedated sleep, this time with an expression of annoyance on his face. He was obviously tired of being drugged like this, but apparently, the detoxification potion had yet to completely detox him. He would stay this way until it was finished...That only left the question of how much Blaise had actually drank...But Hermione had more important things to focus on. She walked back over to the fireplace to begin her Arithmancy homework.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Hermione just stared at her homework, she couldn't concentrate. Her mind kept wandering back to Blaise and Draco and everything going on.

"When did Blaise and Draco become the good guys and Ron and Harry become the bad," she asked herself.

"Ever since they started plotting against you towards the end of last school year," Blaise answered.

Hermione jumped at the sound of his voice. "God Blaise, you scared me. I didn't know you were up," Hermione said, walking over to him.

"Yeah, well Dray made a lot of noise when he left a few minutes ago," Blaise said rubbing his head. "Damn...how much did I have to drink last night? I feel like I've been run over by a semi. What?" Blaise asked upon seeing the look on Hermione's face.

"That is a Muggle expression," Hermione answered. She looked at Blaise and he had a "and your point is" look on his face. "It's just that I never thought you, Blaise Zabini, would know a Muggle expression. But then again, everything about this year is unexpected," Hermione stated sadly. "I mean if someone told me two months ago that Ron and Harry would be trying to kill me and I would be becoming friends with the two Slytherin Princes, I would have laughed in their face, and then hexed them into next month."

"Just out of curiosity, how did you not know what they were planning?" Blaise asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Didn't you stay with them all summer?" Blaise noted her confirming nod and continued, "Dray, Pansy and I overheard them talking about killing someone toward the end of last school year. When we got back to mine and Dray's room, we decided then and there that we would find out what they were up to. We followed them, and found out when their next meeting was, and we listened in on that. There wasn't as many in their group as there is now. And we listened in during the summer, too."

"So you are telling me that I lived with these two all summer long, and I had no idea?" Hermione said, stunned. She walked over to Blaise and sat down opposite him, "Does Ginny know what's going on?" Hermione questioned.

"I don't think so, but I'm not positive. She hasn't been to any of their meetings, but one can never be sure." Blaise looked around the room trying to distract himself from the depressing conversation that was taking place. "So why are we still in the Room of Requirement?" Blaise asked.

"Well, you passed out here and I gave you a detox potion, and you've been in and out of consciousness since."

"Oh. That would explain the headache then. Detox potions on top of massive amounts of alcohol is never a good result."

"How much did you drink last night, anyways? Draco didn't seem too bad off."

"I'm not too sure, but it had to be a lot. I mean, I don't know when the last time I felt this bad was," Blaise said, putting his head in his lap.

"Come on, let's get back to the common room, we can talk more there. And Draco better come too," Hermione said sitting up.

By the time Blaise and Hermion got back to their rooms, Draco was waiting at the portrait hole for them.

"Hey guys, what's so important it couldn't wait until...well in about eight hours?" Draco asked.

"Eight hours? What time is it?"

"About four a.m.," Blaise responded.

"Can we please just go inside now?" Draco asked, sounding very impatient.

Hermione turned to the portrait and whispered the password. As soon as it opened, she stepped inside, there was a puff of black smoke. Before the boys could get inside, Hermione was gone. By the time the smoke had cleared, both boys were livid.

"Potter!" they yelled in unison.

* * *

A/N: This chapter was written by Lella. As is the next. Chapter 10 was written by Besh.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

When Hermione awoke, she was very groggy. She didn't know where she was, although she had a vague idea. She also knew that Harry and Ron and Merlin knows who else were somewhere nearby.

Meanwhile, Draco and Blaise went back to the dungeons, and began to plan. They knew they shouldn't waste time going down to the dungeons, but they wouldn't put it past Potter and Weasel to have a spy or something in the Heads' room. Both knew that the dungeons were impenetrable. Any Slytherin would kill either on the spot, and Draco and Blaise had then all on the lookout for any members of the committee, but Harry and Ron especially.

Blaise was pacing in Draco's room, thinking as hard as he could, but he still couldn't come up with anything that could be used. Most of his thoughts would've turned into suicide missions. And Draco wasn't helping much. All he was doing was laying on her bed. Just as Blaise was going to suggest that they just go without a plan, Draco bolted upright.

"I got it!" he shouted.

"I hope it's good. You know Potter and Weasel will probably be waiting to kill us," Blaise said disgustedly.

Draco rolled his eyes at Blaise's comment. "You're lucky you're on the other side of the room. Don't act like you don't know any dark magic, I know damn well that you know as much, if not more than I do. Anyways, since we don't know where they have her, we will have to scry for her. Then we just go in and get her. If they attack us, well let's just say it won't be pretty for them."

"Fine, but if I get killed it's on your shoulders," Blaise said to Draco, noticing that he was already off his bed and packing a bag.

"Let's go," Draco said, and half-ran out of the room.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

A/N: Okay, so I'm really sorry that this took so long. I got distracted, and neglected the story for months. cries because he's such a bad co-author Anyway, here's my chapter. The previous two were Lella's; we decided it would be easier if we wrote two chapters at a time, rather than taking turns writing each chapter. We'll leave it to you to decide whether or not it flows better. Read and review, please. It's greatly appreciated to know that our story is interesting to some people. Oh, and if you don't mind, I'll just add replies to reviews onto the end of the chapter, okay? We use my email, so...Yeah. If you want, you can address the review to both of us, or just one of us, and I'll see that Lella or I reply to it, or both of us should you want. Okay, so now I'm done with the massive A/N, so on with the story! is completely ignorant as to whatever A/N's Lella may have posted with her chapters Oh, and one more thing...I put some Parseltongue in this chapter. I didn't feel like looking up what hissing noises Harry would have made, so I just put what he said in brackets to let you know that he's speaking in Parseltongue.

--

Blaise barely had time to flick his wand and get some clothes of his own into a bag before he was sprinting after Draco. _Those damn Quidditch matches_, he thought vehemently, thinking of how participating in that sport seemed to give one an unbelievable physique and endless endurance. Draco was already yards ahead of him, and showing no sign of slowing. "Merlin, Draco, hold your thestrals a minute!" he yelled, but in vain; Draco apparently had not heard him or was ignoring him, as his steps didn't slow. Growling, Blaise picked up the pace, managing to get three feet behind Draco.

"Are you ignoring me on purpose?" he asked in between breaths. Draco just looked at him out of the corner of his eye and smirked, before continuing on. Swearing, Blaise continued sprinting as well.

As they were running, Blaise got an idea. "Draco, we've got to get Ginny," he panted, nearly running into Draco, who had stopped short. Turning to look at Blaise, Draco said, "Weaslette...I mean, Ginny...Yeah, we need to get her." He turned his horrified look on Blaise, who understood soon enough. They had completely forgotten about Ginny in the aftermath of Hermione's disappearance. Together they sprinted off again, both keeping in perfect step, fueled by adrenaline.

They ran up Gryffindor Tower to the Fat Lady, said the password, and, ignoring the Fat Lady's protests and disapproving looks, climbed through the portrait hole and into the Gryffindor Common Room. Immediately, Draco dove left and Blaise dove right as assorted Stunners and Disarming Spells, no doubt courtesy of Potter's odd little club, flew at them from nearly every angle.

Standing up quickly, Blaise yelled, "_Protego Maxima_!" and waved his wand in a sweeping upward gesture, smirking as a purple line came out of the tip of his wand, and deflected the Stunner that had been aimed at his head. He heard Draco yell the same spell, and began waving his wand in sweeping arcs, creating more and more shields. When he felt he had been sufficiently protected, Blaise raised his wand and yelled "_Immobulus_!" Immediately, everyone in the room save Draco had frozen unwillingly. Blaise nearly laughed out loud watching them struggle to move.

"No doubt Potter stationed them here," Blaise said to Draco, taking down the shields.

"Too right you are," a voice behind him said, and Blaise whirled around just in time to see Potter firing a silver jinx at him. _He knows nonverbal magic_, Blaise thought in surprise, as he jumped out of the way to watch the silver jinx blast a hole in the ground. Growling, Blaise pointed his wand at Potter and shouted, "_Serpensortia_!" He laughed at Potter's bored expression; everyone in the school had known since Potter's second year that he was a Parselmouth. "Is that really the best you've got, Zabini?" Potter asked, before hissing at the snake lightly. "Go away," he told it. "Nothing to see here." The snake looked slightly perplexed, but hissed in return and slithered away.

Smirking, Harry turned back to where he had seen Blaise to say, "Now then, where were we?" only to find that Blaise had disappeared. Looking left to right, Harry was caught off-guard when a hand suddenly grabbed his throat from behind and a wand was suddenly prodding his Adam's apple. "Where's Ginny?" Draco's voice said. Harry smirked. "Why, Ginny is on our side. Yes, I managed to...convince her that--" he cut off, spluttering as Draco's wand jabbed deeper into his windpipe. "Careful what you say, Potty," Draco snarled. "I won't hesitate to kill you. A simple Reducto would do the trick...But I won't. I can't. I need information that you're going to give to me."

"And if I refuse?" Harry replied smugly, only to let out a whoosh of air as Blaise's fist pistoned into his stomach. "If you refuse, we'll beat you within an inch of your life, and THEN kill you," Blaise replied just as smugly. "You thought you had the upper hand, didn't you, Potter? Now then..."

"Tell us where Ginny is," Draco finished Blaise's sentence. Harry sighed, still wheezing, and said, "I don't know where she is."

"Bullshit you don't, Potty," Draco yelled in his ear, smirking as it turned bright red.

"Ahh, dammit...No, Malfoy, I really don't know where she is," Harry said. "I was looking for her, but I lost her." Draco's eyes narrowed, and he thought, _Legilimens_! Instantly, he was inside Harry's mind, seeing Ginny's face, feeling Harry's frustration as she vanished from his sight...

"Fine, Potty. I believe you. Now answer this: Where's Granger?" Draco asked, moving on to the next item in his mental agenda.

"She...she's with Ron," Harry said. "With Ron in...In..." he trailed off as his face turned bright purple, and Draco realized he had been spelled not to reveal things he wasn't supposed to. "Never mind, Potter," Draco said hastily, sighing as Harry's face slowly returned to normal.

"We'll find them both ourselves."

"Wait," Harry said frantically, all traces of evil gone from his face. Draco looked at him curiously. "What is it, Potter?"

"Hermione is not far from the Divination classroom. She's so close to it, it's scary." Draco nodded, surprised, before releasing Harry's neck and nodding to Blaise, who promptly muttered, "_Obliviate_," watching as Potter's eyes glazed over and his face got that evil, calculating expression on it once more. Looking at him, Blaise and Draco both walked out of the Common Room, heading for the Divination tower.

"Well that was productive," Blaise said conversationally, shouting as Draco punched him in the arm.

"Shut the hell up, Blaise. We still have to find the two of them," he growled, walking more quickly.

"Merlin, I just won't make jokes any more, then," Blaise muttered to himself, speeding up slightly to keep in step with Draco.


	14. Authors Note

A/N: Besh and I are a little stuck on Chapter 14. We know where we want to go with the story, but are having a little trouble getting there.

We're asking you, the readers, for any suggestions you might have for Chapter 14. Feel free to message us, or email either one of us.

Besh: 

Lella: 


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